The present invention relates in general to a brake for rail vehicles and, in particular, to a new and useful brake where the brake power is obtained from a pneumatic accumulator and released by a reduction of the pneumatic pressure in a control cylinder counteracting the brake power.
Such a brake is known for use as a railroad brake. The brake responds upon reduction of the air pressure in the control line. It works satisfactorily in normal service braking operations. For emergency braking, however, where activation is accomplished by opening the emergency brake valve or a rupture of the control line, the brake power is no longer adjustable or regulatable, but instead depends, in an uncontrolled manner, on the permanently set accumulator pressure and on ambient and variable conditions, such as humidity.